Something is stuck in my heart, neither here nor there, and my emotions inside and outside are not connected.
The two had a simple meal outside, and after arriving home, Fang Bai went straight to her room.
Although Fang Bai acted normally, Ji Yuning still noticed that something was wrong with her.
Putting aside other minor details, Fang Bai completely ignored Bei Bei, who was squatting on the shoe cabinet waiting for her to stroke or hug her, after entering the room.
This has never happened before.
As Fang Bai walked past the shoe cabinet, Bei Bei jumped to the ground and followed behind him, meowing proudly twice to remind him that he hadn't picked it up yet.
As soon as Fang Bai entered the bedroom, she shut the door on Bei Bei, who was following behind her.
"Meow?"
After letting out a confused cry, Beibei used her pink paws to grab the door, trying to push it open, but after two creaks, the door slammed shut.
The snowball-shaped head turned to Ji Yuning, its big, bright eyes staring out, "Meow, meow."
Each cry was more plaintive than the last, as if she were accusing Fang Bai of his behavior to Ji Yuning.
Ji Yuning's gaze, which had been fixed on Fang Bai's bedroom door, shifted downwards. She looked at Beibei, walked over, and hugged it in her arms.
"Auntie is thinking about something, she's not ignoring you on purpose." Ji Yuning carried Beibei to the snack storage area and fed her a cat treat.
After feeding Beibei the cat treats, Ji Yuning put Beibei on the ground, stroked its ear and said, "Play by yourself for a while, don't scratch the door and bother Auntie."
Beibei meowed and turned to walk to its cat tree.
When Ji Yuning got up, she looked at Fang Bai's bedroom, glanced at the door, then went to the side, opened the refrigerator, and took the key before leaving.
After returning to his bedroom, Fang Bai changed out of his work clothes and into a short-sleeved shirt and shorts, looking relaxed and comfortable.
However, her thoughts were still in disarray. She lay in bed, staring at the ceiling for an unknown amount of time.
After a long and tiring day, Fang Bai's eyelids gradually became heavy. Just as drowsiness crept in, Fang Bai propped himself up from the bed, slowly walked to the dressing table, and began to remove his makeup.
The thought she had just been pondering resurfaced in her mind, but Fang Bai restrained herself from thinking about it and focused her attention on the mirror.
Fang Bai worked very slowly and carefully to remove her makeup; even with light makeup, it took her a while.
After removing her makeup, Fang Bai went to the restroom to wash her face.
Just as she came out of the bathroom and was about to go back to her room, she heard a few faint noises coming from the kitchen.
Fang Bai walked over and bumped into Ji Yuning, who had just come out of the kitchen.
Ji Yuning also changed out of her suit and wore the same casual clothes as Fang Bai.
Her long hair was casually tied up at the back of her head, making her seem less distant.
Upon seeing Fang Bai, Ji Yuning said, "I was just about to call Auntie."
"Are you hungry?" That was Fang Bai's first reaction. She looked towards the kitchen. "What do you want to eat? I'll make it for you."
"No," Ji Yuning said. "I bought some fruit and wanted to ask Auntie if she'd like a fruit platter or a fruit salad?"
“…Fruit salad, please.” Fang Bai hesitated for a moment before saying, but she wasn’t considering what to eat. Even her answer followed the “nearest principle.” She was just curious why Ji Yuning was suddenly doing this.
It's rare to see Ji Yuning eat before bed.
Ji Yuning nodded: "Okay, then Auntie will wait for me on the sofa."
Fang Bai obediently sat down on the sofa.
Beibei squatted in the corner, staring at her with her eyes open, motionless, showing none of her usual initiative to approach her.
Unaware of what was happening, Fang Bai opened his arms and softly called out, "Beibei~ come here~"
The previous reserve vanished, and the fleshy ball immediately stood up and walked in front of Fang Bai, letting Fang Bai rub and caress it.
Upon seeing this, Ji Yuning, who had just come out of the kitchen, raised an eyebrow slightly. Beibei held a grudge; she had thought she would ignore Fang Bai for days…
If a cat treat can appease one cat, then the other one must be easy to appease too, right?
Ji Yuning's fruit salad, made in a deep, transparent bowl, looked very appetizing.
Fang Bai was still playing with the cat when Ji Yuning walked over and sat down next to him. She picked up a piece of fruit and naturally fed it to Fang Bai.
Fang Bai instinctively reached for the fruit, but the moment her lips touched it, she took the fork and said softly, "Auntie, you can do it yourself."
Ji Yuning did not refuse, "Okay."
Beibei jumped out of Fang Bai's arms.
Ji Yuning moved the bowl in front of Fang Bai, and after watching Fang Bai eat the fruit, she said, "Auntie, feed me a bite."
Fang Bai's eyelashes trembled slightly. "You... I'll go get one for you."
"Does Auntie dislike me?" Ji Yuning's words followed Fang Bai's tone, as if she had anticipated that Fang Bai would say this.
Fang Bai paused in his act of getting up.
She looked at Ji Yuning, whose eyebrows were slightly lowered and lips were pursed, looking aggrieved.
Fang Baixin tensed up, her hand holding the fork unconsciously falling onto the bowl. "What do you want to eat?"
Ji Yuning's expression instantly turned cold. Without even glancing at the bowl, she stared at Fang Bai's profile and said, "Auntie, feed me whichever fruit you think you resemble."
Fang Bai paused for a moment, pretending not to understand Ji Yuning's words, and asked with a light laugh, "Can't I be a person?"
“Yes,” Ji Yuning said frankly, “but I can’t eat it.”
“…”
Ji Yuning said in a hoarse voice, "So we can only eat fruit."
Fang Bai stuck the fork into the bowl, casually picked up a piece of fruit, and fed it to Ji Yuning.
Ji Yuning seemed oblivious to how casually Fang Bai forked the fruit. Staring at the strawberries in front of her, she asked, "Does Auntie think she looks like a strawberry?"
Fang Bai then noticed that the fruit on the fork beneath the thick yogurt was pink strawberries.
"I…"
Fang Bai only uttered one syllable, and Ji Yuning continued, "I think so too."
Ji Yuning parted her thin lips slightly, gently biting the tip of the strawberry, without touching the fork.
After putting the strawberry in her mouth, Ji Yuning stuck out her tongue and licked the yogurt off her lips. Throughout the process, her eyes were fixed on Fang Bai, meeting his gaze.
Fang Bai looked away when Ji Yuning stuck out her tongue to lick her lips.
Even if a seemingly abstinent person makes this gesture unintentionally, it's no less alluring than those seductive enchantresses. Not to mention Ji Yuning's seemingly unintentional yet deliberate actions; every glance is captivating, radiating her own charm.
Fang Bai's lips were dry and his tongue parched. Without hesitation, he forked a piece of fruit and put it in his mouth.
He bit down, and the fruit burst open in his mouth. Coincidentally, Fang Bai was also eating a strawberry.
As Fang Bai savored the sweetness of the strawberry, Ji Yuning's voice rang out: "But this strawberry doesn't quite resemble Auntie's. It's sour, while Auntie..."
Fang Bai's gaze swept towards Ji Yuning.
Ji Yuning smiled and said, "I tried it last time, Auntie. It's sweet, very sweet."
"Cough cough."
Fang Bai accidentally choked.
Ji Yuning didn't turn her head, put the bowl on the coffee table, leaned towards Fang Bai and gently patted her back.
Fang Bai wasn't choked by the food, but by Ji Yuning's words.
When Ji Yuning said she tasted something, did she mean… the last time she kissed her? She didn't have anything on her lips that day, so how could it be sweet?
The coughing stopped, and Fang Bai was about to tell Ji Yuning that they didn't need to film anymore when Ji Yuning's hand had already been removed from Fang Bai's back.
However, her gaze drifted to Fang Bai's face, and as she ran her fingers across Fang Bai's lips, Ji Yuning asked in a low voice, "Did you see the chat history?"
While buying fruit, Ji Yuning paid with WeChat Pay and her eyes inadvertently caught sight of her pinned post.
She realized at a glance that Fang Bai might have seen this, and that Fang Bai's strange behavior started from that moment.
Fang Bai was stunned, a hint of unease flashing in his eyes.
Ji Yuning noticed Fang Bai's reaction and said in a relaxed tone, "Auntie, don't worry about those things. That was just me talking to myself. I've been holding my feelings in for too long, so I found a place to confide in."
Ji Yuning: "I deleted your records because I didn't want you to see them."
Fang Bai's eyelids were half-closed, but she still saw it. In fact, she shared the same thought as Ji Yuning: she didn't want Ji Yuning to know that she had seen it.
She couldn't explain why, but her intuition told her that once the lump in her throat disappeared, she would know.
Ji Yuning tucked a stray strand of hair behind Fang Bai's ear and said softly, "Don't feel guilty, okay?"
Psychological burden.
Ji Yuning attributed the three years of secrets that Fang Bai accidentally discovered to the pressure Cheng put on Fang Bai.
She knew Fang Bai; he would inevitably start thinking all sorts of nonsense because of these things, and after that, Fang Bai himself would be the one who felt bad.
Ji Yuning didn't want Fang Bai to change his opinion of her because of these things.
Because tomorrow she will love Fang Bai even more than she does today or in the past.
Putting aside the mess in his mind for the time being, Fang Bai smiled at Ji Yuning and said, "I don't think there's anything wrong with it. I'll forget about it after a good night's sleep."
Ji Yuning smiled slightly. "That's good."
Ji Yuning then withdrew her hand and picked up the fruit salad again. "Want some more?"
Fang Bai put the fork into the bowl. "I can't eat anymore."
Her dinner hadn't been digested yet.
“Then have a piece,” Ji Yuning said. “Auntie chose the fruit that looks like herself, but she hasn’t chosen mine yet.”
Fang Bai looked down at the bowl, carefully examined the fruit inside, and then said, "You're not here."
Ji Yuning didn't intend to associate herself with the fruit; she said, "Just pick one."
After hesitating for a moment, Fang Bai forked a piece of watermelon and put it in his mouth.
A passionate, fiery red, and also very sweet.
Ji Yuning cupped Fang Bai's face in one hand and placed a kiss on Fang Bai's slightly puffed-up cheek. "Good auntie."
She just wanted to kiss Fang Bai while she was speechless.